The Tasmanian Times recently published an article by Jane Rankin-Reid, entitled ‘An Impure Tasmania’: An Impure Tasmania: HERE
In her article Ms Rankin-Reid reveals ignorance on a number of matters, makes ill-informed assertions and impugns the integrity of AbaF, our councillors and their people, and our processes.
I wish to set the record straight on pertinent facts and to reject the overt and implied allegations of improper practice on the part of AbaF and its stakeholders.
“Instead, our current government’s relationship with local arts donors remains dubiously insincere if not manically controlling. The article reveals a significant lack in understanding of the relationship between government and ‘donors.
Tasmania’s chapter of the Australian Arts Business Foundation (AbaF) shares an address with Arts Tasmania. Co-location of AbaF within offices of Arts Tasmania has clear logic – we’re working with many of the same arts clients and the opportunity for sharing knowledge and effective collaboration is much enhanced when you’re ‘in the same room’ – it also means less money is spent on infrastructure (shared photocopier, telephone service, IT system, etc)
Arts Tasmania’s current chairman is on the AbaF board. This represents a valuable and effective opportunity for shared knowledge and cooperation and for including the informed views of a senior business leader with immediate and intimate understanding of government arts funding issues and processes.
The foundation’s 2010 awards ceremonies lavish prizes for special relationships between the state government and local companies … The annual national AbaF Awards are presented to the best examples of relationships between the arts, business and donors. State governments are not eligible to nominate for AbaF Awards.
… one of whom kindly supplied Brendan Bromley [sic] as a judge (experienced in arts partnerships according to AbaF) AbaF recruits its Awards judges from the many people in Australia with expertise in connections between the arts, business and donors.
… for AbaF’s national award which went to, you guessed it, Federal Hotels, the company he works for. AbaF upholds the highest standards of probity in its Awards judging process ensuring that there is no actual or perceived conflict of interest. Brendan Blomeley was no exception and the implied questioning of his integrity is most unjust.
Now that Mr. Bromley has been replaced as Federal Hotel’s Corporate Affairs Advisor by former Tourism Tasmania CEO Darrel Hanna, can the state government please now advise us … The appointment to AbaF’s board and the selection of AbaF Awards judges are not matters for the Tasmanian government and it plays no role in AbaF’s decisions in these regards.
There is no avoiding the fact that all charitable fund raising, administration and spending must operate openly and completely separately from governments, otherwise private donations are literally being used to fund the cost of election promises, as is evidently the case in Tasmania. These are extraordinary assertions presented without evidence.
The Commonwealth funded AbaF describes its relationship with state governments as “arms length” but this is apparently not necessary here. AbaF offers no description of its relationship with state governments; this reference is entirely in regard to its relationship to the Commonwealth government.
Until the state government releases its grip on subsidising its own political agenda by encouraging legitimate genuinely hands-off arts philanthropy, the Australian public and companies will remain relatively stingy as arts donors. Business support for the arts in Australia is provided in the form of sponsorships and partnerships with material returns for that support. Arts organisations and cultural institutions are encouraged and supported by state government funding bodies to pursue private sector support as part of their income mix. It is not the same as philanthropy and donations – which come from individuals and grant-making foundations. AbaF connects the arts, business and donors. Over 10 years we’ve built a strong position as a national advocate and capacity builder for all three sectors. During this time private sector support (sponsorships and donations) for the arts in Australia has almost doubled to $212 million (2009).
And the important creative adventures traditionally resulting from the natural progression of independently driven relationships between artists and donors will remain absent from much of Australian cultural life. AbaF’s annual Gold Book documents the best relationships between arts, business and donors in Australia. Over ten editions, AbaF has presented more than 300 case studies which demonstrate how very much private support for the arts in Australia is growing and thriving.
But it is far more dangerous for our arts community to remain silent in the face of such undermining amoral actions by our government, the AbaF and Federal Hotels. AbaF finds this statement nonsensical and rejects the ill-informed and biased arguments which have led to this conclusion – the partnership between governments (including the Tasmanian government), business (including The Federal Group) and an organisation (like AbaF) which helps to build the culture and capacity of the arts, business and donors to connect has evident benefit for the arts and, ultimately, the community.”
